RippleMan’s Rib-N-Dippin’ Sauce

This is actually an analysis for the not-yet-commercial sauce known as Ripple BBQ Sauce. Although it’s not commercially available, I reviewed it with the same rigor applied towards a traditional sauce.

I’ve done at least 6 of these in the past year, and to be honest it’s quite fun. It’s a little like college basketball versus pro basketball (not that I watch or play or coach basketball). The idea is that I can help guide the sauce maker at an earlier stage when they are more open to receiving feedback and have a great future ahead of them (whereas bottled sauce makers are a little more committed to their recipe and their bottle and their plan).

Let’s get back to RippleMan’s Rib-N-Dippin’ Sauce!

Outside the Bottle

Well – they sent me the above bottle, and I thought the Ball jar was a nice way to add class and highlight the excellent dark yellow/brown color of the sauce filled with spices and flavors. But I didn’t review the label but I did reflect what I thought the label should contain.

The label, should this become a viable product in the near future, should reflect the mustard-base and highlight the origin of the name – the Grateful Dead song – a favorite of the creator and his wife who goes by the name Ripple Lady. Perhaps a set of dancing pigs to match the popular dancing bears. Obviously they will need to avoid copyright issues by going too close to the Grateful Dead’s trademark pictures, but get close enough to get the point across.

Inside the Bottle

This is a versatile sauce, good uncooked and cooked on meat. I tried it on chicken and pork chops and found the consistency to be easy to apply and work with and the flavor to be outstanding. The mustard/vinegar/spice combination was done just right. I tasted a little sweetness from the spice rub but the overall taste was more nuanced and nothing like honey mustard. The initial flavor is strong mustard and sweet and after a second or two, the flavor of the vinegar kicks in and delivers a tangy kick. Truly multidimensional.

Obviously there is a lot of work to get to the next stage, and deliver the product to the market, but the inside of the bottle is remarkable and will get people coming back as soon as they try it once. I’m not smoking anything or hallucinating when I say this is one of the better mustard sauces I’ve tried!